Militants in Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday shot dead a bank manager in the Areh area of South Kashmir’s Kulgam district. The police identified the manager as Vijay Kumar who worked at the Elaqahi Dehati Bank Branch of Kulgam.?

Vijay Kumar, a manager with the Ellaqui Dehati Bank at Areh Mohanpora branch in the south Kashmir district, received grievous gunshot injuries and died on his way to ?hospital, officials said.

Kumar, a resident of Hanumangarh in Rajasthan, had joined the Kulgam branch only a week ago. He had earlier been working in the Kokernag branch of the bank, co-owned by the Central government, the Jammu and Kashmir administration and the State Bank of India.

Security forces have cordoned off the area and a hunt has been launched to nab the attackers, the officials said.

Two days ago, on May 31, Rajni Bala, a Hindu woman teacher from Jammu's Samba district, was shot dead by terrorists at a government school in Gopalpora, Kulgam. ?On May 12, Rahul Bhat, a clerk, was shot dead inside the tehsildar's office in Chadoora tehsil of Budgam district.

Of the eight targeted killings in Kashmir since May 1, three victims were off-duty policemen and five were civilians.

Political parties react

The latest killing led to a chorus of condemnation from political parties across the spectrum, including the National Conference and the BJP. ?

The BJP condemned the act saying "what a shameful act yet again. This time a bank manager of Elaqayi Dihati Bank Vijay Kumar of Rajashtan falls to the bullets of terrorists qt Kulgam. Now terrorists targeting public servants too."

Altaf Thakur J&K BJP spokesman said,?"A serious issue and a matter of concern. High time for security agencies to work out a strategy to stop this vicious cycle of violence."

Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot also condemned the killing of Vijay Kumar by terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir.?

"The killing of Mr Vijay Kumar, a resident of Hanumangarh, Rajasthan, working in Kulgam, Jammu and Kashmir, by terrorists is highly condemnable. I pray to God to give peace to his soul and courage to his family," Gehlot tweeted.?

“So very sorry to hear about the targeted killing of Vijay Kumar. Tweeting to condemn an attack & condole a death are becoming a mind-numbingly regular thing. It’s heartbreaking to see families destroyed like this,” NC vice president Omar Abdullah said in a tweet.

Apni Party chief Altaf Bukhari added that it was painful to witness targeted killings of civilians in Kashmir.

“These dastardly acts of violence have devastated families... It’s shocking. Will words of condemnation be ever enough?” he wrote on Twitter.

Peoples Conference chairman Sajad Lone termed the killing a heinous act and said he was at a loss of words to express his condemnation for such a heinous act.

“Yet again extremely sad news coming in. An innocent civilian working as a manager in a bank in Kulgam has been shot dead,” he said on Twitter.

Joining in the condemnation, PDP general secretary Ghulam Nabi Lone Hanjura said such incidents “unmask” the “fake claims of normalcy” by the administration.

“Yet another life lost, deeply saddening & condemnable. This place has been turned into a battleground by the high headedness of the admin, its fake claims of normalcy stand unmasked. Situation is far from normal & immediate steps need to be taken for redressal. My condolences,” the PDP leader said in a tweet.

Targeted killings have been on a rise in Kashmir.?On May 12,?Rahul Bhat, a revenue department employee,?was killed by militants in the Budgam district. Last week, TV artist Amreen Bhat died after Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists opened fire at her in the Chadoora area of Budgam.

(With PTI Inputs)